Texas meanwhile has drafted in cyber-security experts, as well as the military and counter-terrorism units, including the Texas Division of Emergency Management; Texas Military Department; Texas Department of Public Safety; as well as the Department of Homeland Security; the FBI; and other Federal cybersecurity partners.

Do not pay

Ransomware attacks are on the rise in the US and the government sector is a frequent target. Matters are not helped when local authorities or cities opt to pay the hackers.

“US government bodies have recently been a major target for ransomware attackers as they have been seeing huge pay outs from their attacks, with numerous governments giving into attacker demands and reportedly paying ransoms,” said Robert Ramsden Board, VP EMEA at Securonix.

“It is therefore not surprising the attackers in this incidence are demanding such a huge amount of money – if it worked with previous government agencies, why should it work again?” he added.

“However, it generally is never recommended to pay ransom demands as this only fuels the industry,” said Ramsden Board. “Instead the best defence against ransomware is a comprehensive security program that protects against known threats and malicious intent or behaviour. Companies and governments have an obligation to protect themselves and their citizens or customers from ransomware attackers. Protecting data assets should now be considered a key component of national defence.”

This advice not to pay attackers was repeated by another security expert.

“As long as we as a society continue paying ransoms, these attacks will continue,” said Cody Brocious, head of hacker education at HackerOne.

“Maintain regular (offline!) backups, keep your systems up to date, and don’t pay ransoms if you do happen to get hit,” said Brocious. “At this point, it’s akin to choosing not to get the flu shot; sure, if you’re healthy then you’re not likely to die from the flu, but you may transmit it to someone who will.”

“Giving in to these criminals is acting against the public good, which just ends up protecting organisations from the consequences of not taking their data seriously,” he added.

City attacks

In May a ransomware attack crippled local government services in the city of Baltimore. That city refused to pay the hackers, despite email accounts being disabled and online tax payments unable to be processed.

That city estimated losses of around $18m (£15m) from the attack. The hackers had demanded $100,000 worth of Bitcoin.

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